No. 5: Blackbird Version II
I have recently completed my second Blackbird Anglo concertina. It was a complete re-design with some fairly significant improvements over the prototype model.
…
A Second Müller Conversion
I recently completed a side project I have been working on for quite a while; another conversion of a Wheatstone English to the Müller system.
This one features engraved nickel-silver end plates with a pretzel design by the professional illustrator and concertina player Nina Dietrich.
…
No. 4: A 44 Button Crane Duet
My latest instrument is another Crane duet, this time a traditional-looking 44 button (+ air) with 6 1/4″ hexagonal ends.
Here is its full specification:
- 44+1 button Crane layout with Butterworth curve and slightly narrowed column spacing.
- Six sides.
- Weight: 1170g.
- Seven fold plain black goatskin bellows.
- Black walnut burr veneer with black Rocklite Ebano border inlay.
- Ebonized beech handrails with integral strap fixings.
- French polished finish.
- 6082-T6 aluminium reed frames with steel reed tongues.
- Standard scale reeds on the left hand, long scale on the right hand.
- Sycamore radial tapered reed pans.
- Sycamore action boards.
- Brass sheet riveted action levers.
- 3/16″ nickel silver capped buttons with acetal cores.
- 2mm button travel (giving 4mm pad lift at 2:1 action lever ratio).
- Black wool bushings.
- Tuning: 1/5 comma meantone with root note A=440Hz.
- Includes some modifications to standard Crane layout, such as the addition of left hand A2, Bb2, and B2 notes, and right hand B3.
…
No. 3: A 45 Button Crane Duet
My latest concertina is a 45 button (+ air) Crane duet in a 6 ¼” (159mm) wide eight-sided frame, with rippled maple veneered end plates and sides, applewood border inlay, and Ebano handrails. …